Mars Hi-Res & Thermal Images Payoff 36
eldavojohn writes "The Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter & Mars Odyssey Orbiter took high resolution images (and shots of each other) earlier this year and after studying them, experts believe that there are too many boulders around the proposed Phoenix Mars Lander landing site. From the article, 'At the end of January 2007, scientists will meet to see if there is an obvious choice for a landing site. If not, they will keep analyzing the data until summer 2007. They are comparing HiRISE's data with that taken by the Thermal Emission Imaging System (THEMIS) camera on the Mars Odyssey orbiter. Since boulders hold heat better than soil or sand, they show up in THEMIS images taken early in the morning.'"
this is good (Score:4, Insightful)
It's the Blizzard approach to NASA that is preferable
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Night shots? (Score:4, Interesting)
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Re:Night shots? (Score:4, Interesting)
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Re:Night shots? (Score:4, Insightful)
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T o o t h.
Re:Night shots? (Score:4, Insightful)
At sundown, the entire area will be at about the same temperature, having been heated all day. Picking up reflected infrared sunlight on the warm landscape doesn't leave for a lot of thermal variation. In the morning, however, all of the landscape is cool. Picking up reflected infrared sunlight against a cool background gives you a lot larger thermal contrast.
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Have you ever gone for a walk on the beach in a warm place (southern California or Florida, for example) in mid-day? The sand is usually too hot to walk on. This is because sand has a low thermal inertia and responds quickly changes in energy input. If you walk on that same beach in early
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On the plus side (Score:3, Funny)
Intelligent? (Score:1, Funny)
Uh huh. It just happens to be by RANDOM CHANCE that there are too many boulders around the proposed landing site. Sure. I think that the chances of there being too many boulders is astronomically unlikely. Boulders require a "boulderer", as it were. This must be the result of Intelligent Geology. How else can you explain it?
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I found the Boulder Gods! Created them in their own image: http://www.sacredsites.com/americas/chile/easter_
(Looks like one drank too much and is pukin')
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http://cgi.ebay.com/MOAI-STATUE-TISSUE-BOX-COVER-
They're gonna burn in hell next to the Danish cartoonists.
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There's whole teams of developers goin' to hell.
waste? (Score:4, Funny)
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Provided it doesn't mysteriously disappear while it's in orbit...(cue twilight zone music)
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Nuke the site from orbit. (Score:1)
First of all, it's the only way to be sure! Secondly, it should produce a nice glass "mirror" to land on. Problem solved.
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Ever since you damned neocons took over NASA......
What would the martians do? (Score:3, Interesting)
And don't say here [blogger.com]
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If you know about the oceans, then a floating probe may be the safest way to go. No boulders, no quick-sand, etc. The Titan probe Hueygens (sp?) was actually designed to float in case Titan had hydrocarbon oceans.
Re:What would the martians do? (Score:5, Insightful)
It is rather hot, but not far beyond what some extremophiles face here on Mars.
The dry valleys of Antarctica are also promising.
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+5 Funny (Score:2)
Moo (Score:1)
Boulder? On Mars? That must be why its called Boulder Colorodo (Color Red-o).
*groan*